Thread conveyor



Aug. 11, 1964 H. o. NAUMANN THREAD CONVEYOR 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 1, 1962 IN VEN TOR. HERBERT 0. NAUMA/VN ATTORNEY 1964 H. o. NAUMANN 3,144,187

THREAD CONVEYOR Filed March 1, 1962 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Q Q I I3 I l Ir J I II E 20 WI y u l 5 I I n M I INVENTOR.

25 HERBERT 0. NAUMA/VN ATTORNEY Aug. 11, 1964 o. NAUMANN 3,144,187

THREAD CONVEYOR Filed March 1, 1962 4 Sheets-Sheet a INVENTOR. HERBERT 0. NAUMAN/V Aug. 11, 1964 Filed March 1, 1962 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 vow.

ATTORNEY United States Patent C) 3,144,187 THREAD C(JNVEYGR Herbert 0. Naurnann, Stamford, Conn., assignor to American Cyanarnid Company, New York, N.Y., a corporation of Maine Filed Mar. 1, 1962, Ser. No. 176,647 9 Claims. (Cl. 226-95) This invention relates to method and apparatus for pneumatically conveying thread, and more particularly, for conveying wet thread upwardly from one part of a processing apparatus to another. The term thread as used herein is intended to include extended lengths of materials such as continuous filaments, tapes, films, ribbons, etc.

This invention finds particular utility in the lacingup of a spinning machine for spinning endless lengths of continuous synthetic filamentary material. In such lacing-up operation, the starting end of such a thread is led from a spinnerette through various processing stages to a final thread collection device. The various processing stages normally include a plurality of structures about which the thread must be led sequentially; such structures including thread-advancing rolls or reels, guides, applicators, etc. During such lacing-up operation, it is frequently desirable to temporarily collect as waste a portion of the thread which has been led through certain processing stages until such time as an operator can complete the lacing-up operation by leading the thread through the remaining process stages.

Occasionally, depending upon the design of the spinning machine, it is necessary to lead the thread from one point to another across an extended distance which cannot be reached manually by an operator.

It is an object of this invention to provide a pneumatic conveying device suitable for use in such lacing-up opera tion.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a method and apparatus which is suitable for conveying a wet thread for an extended distance in the performance of such lacing-up operation.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a method, and apparatus for performing such method, useful for conveying a wet thread upwardly for an extended distance and for collecting such thread as waste until such time as the thread may be led through further processing stages.

It is yet another object of this invention to provide such apparatus which will be simple to construct and economical to operate.

These objects, and other objects and advantages as will appear hereinafter, are mainly achieved by providing an upwardly directed pneumatic thread-conveying tube comprising an aspirator section at its lower end with a frustoconical outlet attached thereto. The aspirator tube is provided with means for introducing gas at high velocity directed upwardly toward such flaring outlet tube; such means providing for the introduction or" the high velocity gas at a plurality of locations along the length of the aspirator tube. Thus, air is aspirated into the lower end of the aspirator tube and is compressed and accelerated by the sequential action of the plural jets of high velocity gas and is then progressively expanded in the frustoconical tube to progressively reduce its pressure and upward velocity while conveying the thread by such upwardly moving gas.

For a greater understanding of this invention, reference may be had to the subjoined description of specific illustrative embodiments thereof read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of apparatus according to this invention;

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FIGURE 2 is an enlarged, partially sectional, elevational view of the lower portion of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a view taken on the line Illill of FIG URE 2;

FIGURE 4 is an elevational view of a second embodiment of apparatus according to this invention;

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged sectional view of the lower portion of FIGURE 4; and

FIGURE 6 is view taken on the line VI-VI of FIG- URE 5.

Referring next to the drawings, and more particularly, to FIGURE 1 thereof, there is illustrated. a thread-conveying apparatus according to this invention. Suitably supported on structural members 11 of a spinning machine is frusto-conical tube 13 having upwardly directed aspirator 14 operably associated with its lower end.

As is best seen in FIGURE 2, aspirator 14 comprises a short length of cylindrical tubing 16 provided with suitable means for introducing gas at high velocity thereto. Compressed air line it; (see FIGURE 1) suitably provided with valve 1% and air distributor 2d supplies compressed gas to tubes 22 and 23 which terminate within cylindrical tubing 16 pointing in an upward direction as illustrated in FIGURE 2. In order to minimize the obstruction to the interior of cylindrical tubing 16, the ends of tubes 22 and 23 are somewhat flattened as illustrated in FIGURE 3.

Aspirator 14 may be provided with a funnel-like inlet 25 to assist in introducing thread 26 to aspirator 1 in operation.

Since the illustrated embodiment of this invention is designed for use in conveying thread from a. lower level to an upper level, provision is made for operation from each level. Valve 15 is provided with a yoke 28 secured by pin 29 to valve stem 30 and with upper control rod 31 terminating in handle 32 and lower control rod 33 having a handle 34 thereon. Thus, rotation of yoke 28 by movement of handle 32 or handle 34 serves to open or close valve 19 permitting or stopping the flow of compressed gas into aspirator 14.

Suitably supported on structural members 11 is waste collector 37 which comprises generally a gas-pervious container 38 suported on small tube 39 and connecting tube at which is suitably mounted on structural members 11 for movement between a first position wherein it connects the upper outlet end of flaring tube 13 to small tube 39 and a second position where it does not in any way obstruct the upper outlet end of tube 13. The first position is indicated in dotted lines in FIGURE 1 and the second position is indicated in solid lines.

When valve 19 is opened, compressed air from line 18 flows to distributor Zti and thence through tubes 22 and 23 to enter cylindrical tubing 16 as a pair of upwardly directed high velocity gaseous jets. It will be noted that the jet from tube 22 induces an upward flow of aspirated air which reduces the pressure existing within tubing 16 between the ends of tubes 22 and 23. This thus-produced vacuum assists the jet of gas from tube 23 in attaining a higher velocity for a given. pressure than would otherwise be obtainable. This higher velocity induced in the jet emitted from tube 23 aspirates an increased quantity of air from the ambinet atmosphere through funnel-like inlet 25 into cylindrical tubing 1.6. Also, the jet from tube 23 raises this aspirated ambient air to an elevated pressure which is further increased by the additional compressing action of the upper jet emitted from tube 22. This sequential placement. of the jets of compressed gas provides a more efficient utilization of the compressed air producing higher conveying power for a given quantity of air. This is especially important when dealing with wet thread, especially when it must be transported upwardly for extended distances which thread is diflicult to convey due to its density and stickiness or tendency to adhere to surfaces due to surface tension.

To use this apparatus for lacing-up a spinning machine, connecting tube 40 is rotated into a position (shown in dotted lines in FIGURE 1) where it serves to connect the outlet of flaring tube 13 with gas-pervious container 38, compressed air valve 19 is opened, and the end of thread 26 is introduced to funnel-like inlet 25. The aspirated air sucks thread 26 into and through aspirator 14 and propels it through frusto-conical tube 13 and connecting tube 40 to gas-pervious container 38. When .the operator on the upper portion of the spininng machine is ready, he moves connecting tube 46 to its second position, laces thread 26 around thread-advancing rolls 41, and operates handle 32 to turn off valve 19, thus discontinuing operation of the thread-conveying device.

It is important that frusto-conical tube 13 through which the compressed gas from aspirator 14 along with the aspirated air therefrom be outwardly flaring as illustrated. The outward flare permits this gas to progressively expand and to progressively reduce its pressure and upward velocity thereby minimizing the back presssure against which the jets from tubes 22 and 23 must operate to provide more eificient utilization of this compressed gas. It is readily apparent that if the back pressure is permitted to become high enough, it is possible that aspirator 14 will no longer serve as an aspirator but will blow the compressed gas from tubes 22 and 23 downwardly rather than upwardly. This flaring tube also tends to minimize the chance of obstruction of the tube by the loose initial end of thread 26 when first introduced to the thread-conveying device before it has gotten through to gas-pervious container 38.

While the magnitude of the cone angle of frusto-conical tube is important .to provide optimum operation, it is dependent upon so many factors, such as length of tube 13, diameter of aspirator 14, gas pressure available at distributor 20, velocity with which thread 26 is to be conveyed, etc., that no generalization can be made except that the upward velocity of the gas leaving the outlet of tube 13 must be greater than the thread velocity.

Referring next to FIGURES 4- through 6, there is shown another embodiment of a thread conveyor in accordance with the teachings of this invention.

The thread conveyor of FIGURE 4 comprises an upwardly directed aspirator 51 leading into frusto-conical tube 52 which function in a manner analogous to the functioning of the corresponding units in the embodiment previously described. Aspirator 51 is supplied with compressed gas from compressed air line 54 under control of valve 55. Atfixed to the valve stem of valve 55 is a sector gear 56 which meshes with another sector gear 57 rigidly secured to the upper end of aspirator 51. The thread conveyor is suitably mounted in bearings 58, 59 so that movement of handles 66 or 61 will cause aspirator section 51 to rotate thus rotating sector gear 57 and sector gear 56 turning valve 55 on or 01f as may be desired.

As in the previous embodiment, the inlet of aspirator 51 is provided with a funnel-like inlet 64 and the outlet of frusto-conical tube 52 is provided with a waste collector 65 which, in this embodiment, comprises a simple gas-pervious chamber which can be manually positioned over the outlet end of frusto-conical tube 52 as illustrated in dotted lines or removed therefrom as illustrated in solid lines. As is apparent from the description of the previous embodiment, in operation, waste collector 65 will be positioned in the position shown in dotted lines for the collection of waste until such time as the operator is ready to continue the lacing-up operation, whereupon he will remove waste collector 65 and lace thread 66 around thread-advancing rolls 67.

As is best seen in FIGURES and 6, aspirator 51 in this embodiment of the apparatus of this invention has a much different structure than the aspirator 14 previously described.

In this embodiment, aspirator 51 comprises a cylindrical tube 71 having positioned therein an insert 72. Insert 72 is provided with an axial bore 74 through which thread 66 and aspirated air can pass from funnel-like inlet 64 to outwardly flaring tube 52. Insert 72 is recessed around its outermost portion in such fashion as to provide gas passageways between insert 72 and cylindrical tube 71. This passageway has the form of an annulus 75 near the bottom thereof, flutes 76 in the area cut by line VIVI (and illustrated in FIGURE 6) and an annulus 77 thereabove. A plurality of openings or orifices 79 are provided between the annulus 75 and bore 74 in the lower regions of aspirator 51, said orifices being angled so as to direct jets of gas upwardly into bore 74. Insert 72 is also provided with a plurality of orifices 80 connecting annulus 77 and bore 74 toward the upper portion of aspirator 51 and angled so as to direct high velocity jets of gas upwardly into bore 74. It is thus seen that aspirator 71 provides for introducing high velocity jets of gas sequentially along the length of bore 74 in a fashion analogous to that of tubes 22 and 23 in aspirator 14 previously described, and for the same purpose.

Preferably, orifices 79 are uniformly spaced around the periphery of bore 74 so as to balance the forces of these jets impinging on the upwardly moving thread passing through bore 74 to assist in centralizing the location of this thread and minimizing the danger of the wet thread contacting and sticking to the walls of the aspirator and flared tube. Similarly, orifices 80 are preferably uniformly distributed around the bore 74. As illustrated herein, there are four orifices 79 spaced at intervals (see FIGURE 6) and similarly, there are four orifices 80 distributed at right angles to each other.

In a specific installation, an aspirator comprising a 6" long section of 18 gauge /6" OD. tube welded to a frustoconical tube 13 about 40 long having an inlet of 75" ID. and an outlet of about 1 /2 ID. was constructed in accordance with FIGURES 1 through 3. When supplied with compressed air at a pressure of about 60 p.s.i., it was used to lift wet gelled polyacrylonitrile thread, produced in accordance with the teachings of US. patent application Serial No. 160,198, now Patent No. 3,104,938, filed December 18, 1961, by Kocay and Preece, and assigned to the assignee of the present application, for a distance of about 8 feet to the outlet of flared tube 13.

I claim:

1. Thread-conveying apparatus comprising an elongated tube having a lower open inlet end and an upper open outlet end and jet means for introducing gas at high velocity into said tube near said inlet end directed upwardly toward said outlet end to thereby induce a suction at the inlet end of said tube, said tube flaring outwardly from a region on the side of said jet means remote from said inlet end to said outlet end.

2. Apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein said jet means comprises means for introducing gas moving at high velocity to the interior of said tube at a plurality of locations disposed at varying distances from said inlet end.

3. Thread-conveying apparatus comprising: an aspirator tube having a lower open inlet end and an upper open outlet end; jet means for introducing gas moving at high velocity to within said aspirator tube with said gas moving upwardly toward the outlet end thereof; and an elongated frusto-conical tube secured to the outlet of said aspirator tube as an outwardly flaring extension thereof.

4. Apparatus as defined in claim 3 wherein said jet means comprises means for introducing gas at high velocity to a plurality of zones within said aspirator tube, each of said zones being located a different distance from the inlet of said aspirator tube.

5. Apparatus as defined in claim 3 including remov- 5 able means for collecting solid material issuing from the outlet of said elongated tube whenever desired.

6. Apparatus as defined in claim 4- wherein said jet means includes means for introducing gas at high velocity to each said Zone at a plurality of areas equally spaced around the periphery of said aspirator tube.

7. Apparatus as defined in claim 5 wherein said removable means comprises a curved tube pivotably supported for movement between a first position wherein its inlet end is operatively associated with the outlet end of said frusto-conical tube and a second position wherein said curved tube is completely removed away from the outlet end of said frusto-conical tube, said curved tube being provided with a gas-pervious closure for its outlet end.

8. In thread-conveying apparatus comprising a combination of an elongated tube having an open inlet end and an open outlet end at least as large in cross-sectional area as the central portion of said tube and including a substantially cylindrical aspirator tube section having jet means for introducing gas at high velocity into said elongated tube near said inlet end directed toward said outlet end to thereby induce a suction at the inlet end of said tube, an improved jet means comprising means for introducing gas moving toward said outlet end at high velocity to the interior of said aspirator tube section at a plurality of zones disposed adjacent each other at varying distances from said inlet end.

9. Apparatus as defined in claim 8 wherein said jet means includes means for introducing gas at high velocity to each said zone at a plurality of areas equally spaced around the periphery of said aspirator tube.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,173,789 Nikles et al Sept. 19, 1939 2,622,306 Anderson Dec. 23, 1952 2,622,961 Finlayson et a1. Dec. 23, 1952 2,634,491 McDermott Apr. 14, 1953 2,885,257 Courtney et al. May 5, 1959 3,051,364 Barnes et a1. Aug. 28, 1962 

1. THREAD-CONVEYING APPARATUS COMPRISING AN ELONGATED TUBE HAVING A LOWER OPEN INLET END AND AN UPPER OPEN OUTLET END AND JET MEANS FOR INTRODUCING GAS AT HIGH VELOCITY INTO SAID TUBE NEAR SAID INLET END DIRECTED UPWARDLY TOWARD SAID OUTLET END TO THEREBY INDUCE A SUCTION AT THE INLET END OF SAID TUBE, SAID TUBE FLARING OUTWARDLY FROM A REGION ON THE SIDE OF SAID JET MEANS REMOTE FROM SAID INLET END TO SAID OUTLET END. 